weaving

"Bo Ya, when can we lead our troops into Henan?"

"October... Give me another ten months, and Chuanting can train 50,000 elite Shaanxi soldiers!" Sun Chuanting said, his eyes fixed on the Earl of Yongning. He continued, "However, the Earl of Yongning will need to provide more military supplies..."

"The battle of Zhuxian Town consumed a lot of military equipment. Moreover, the troops of Yuan Shizhong and Luo Rucai alone numbered over 100,000 and needed to replenish their military equipment."

"The Luo bandits are cunning and may not be truly willing to surrender. If we equip and train them, they might rebel again in the future. Wouldn't that be aiding the bandits?"

"If you believe, then you have no doubt; if you doubt, then you do not act!"

Zhang Cheng smiled and continued, "Now that I have brought Yuan and Luo under my command, I will not treat them differently; I will treat them as equals."

"Luo is fickle and unpredictable; we must be wary of the Earl of Yongning!"

“Hehe...Since I dare to accept the surrender of the Luo thief, I am not afraid of his reversal.”

The Earl of Yongning said coldly, "What about that traitor Li? Under the might of my valiant army, he crumbled at the first touch!"

"The Yongyi Army is mighty!" Sun Chuanting exclaimed. "With such a strong army, we are indeed not afraid of the Luo bandits' repeated attacks."

Yongning Earl Zhang Cheng suddenly turned around and looked at him, saying, "Boya, the disbanding of Yuan and Luo's troops has yielded a lot of military equipment. Although much of it is damaged, it is still comparable to what Li used. If you need it, I will send someone to deliver it to you."

Sun Chuanting's face lit up with joy, and he said, "It's good enough, it's good enough."

But then a bitter look appeared on his face, and he said, "However... I would appreciate it if Marquis Yongning could grant me some more time to pay for the military equipment..."

Unexpectedly, the Earl of Yongning interrupted him, saying quite readily, "These... are all free for you."

A flicker of gratitude crossed Sun Chuanting's eyes, but it quickly turned into a look of dejection. He had once been wealthy and powerful; why should he have to stoop so low, bowing his head for money...

But circumstances are beyond my control. I still owe the Earl of Yongning a loan of over a million taels of silver. Where do I have the confidence and how can I be assertive?

He looked at the Earl of Yongning and continued, "The Shaanxi troops have been defeated twice by the bandit Li. Even He Fengzi's troops are poorly equipped. Although there are 30,000 to 40,000 men, less than 20,000 are capable of fighting, and only 6,000 cavalrymen can be considered elite."

The Earl of Yongning also sighed and asked, "Boya, how many soldiers have been recruited for the new army?"

"Zuo Xiang's troops have 1,500 veteran soldiers and 3,000 new soldiers; Niu Chenghu's troops have 3,500 veteran soldiers and 2,000 new soldiers; Zheng Jiadong's troops have 2,500 veteran soldiers and 2,000 new soldiers; Luo Shangwen's troops have 2,000 veteran soldiers and 2,000 new soldiers; Xiao Shending's troops have 1,000 veteran soldiers and 2,000 new soldiers."

Sun Chuanting continued in detail: "In addition, there are 5,000 new soldiers, all of whom are being trained by Deputy General Liu. So far, only 16,000 new soldiers have been recruited."

"How about He Renlong's former subordinates?"

"For the time being, fourteen former generals, including Wei Daheng, He Guoxian, Gao Jie, and Dong Xueli, will be in command."

After pondering for a moment, Zhang Cheng, the Marquis of Yongning, asked, "Gao Jie, is that the thief who abducted Li's wife?"

"Exactly this person."

Zhang Cheng's eyes lit up, and he laughed, "This fellow is sworn enemies with Li, and there's no way he'll turn back. Boya, why not give him a promotion and make him important?"

“Haha…” Sun Chuanting laughed a few times and said, “Great minds think alike, Chuanting had the same idea.”

He continued, "Chuan Ting has an idea: once the five thousand new soldiers have completed their training, two thousand will remain in Vice General Liu's camp, and three thousand will be transferred to my standard battalion, under the command of Lieutenant General Wang Ding. I wonder what the Earl of Yongning thinks?"

Zhang Cheng was slightly taken aback and said, "Bo Ya can decide the matter of the Shaanxi army himself. Why ask me?"

“The Earl of Yongning is in charge of military affairs in the five provinces of the Central Plains. How dare I, Sun Chuanting, make this decision without asking?” Zhang Cheng stared intently at him, but he could not see through Sun Chuanting’s thoughts at all. The arrogant and untamed light in his eyes had completely disappeared.

"Hehe. Boya, you're too kind." Zhang Cheng said casually, "You can decide these things yourself. Just... be quick. Now that you've picked up the knife, don't put it down easily. What does it matter if many villains and scoundrels die?"

As he spoke, the Earl of Yongning walked out of the arrow tower and came to a crenellation. Looking at the ferries coming and going on the Yellow River outside the pass, he sighed and said, "Since it has already been stained with blood, then let it be completely stained red."

Sun Chuanting, who had been following the Earl of Yongning, felt a tremor in his heart upon hearing these words.

Before he could think it through, the Earl of Yongning turned around and looked at him: "Once the arrow is released, there is no turning back. If you don't fight to the bitter end, the Shaanxi army will not succeed. Without the protection of military merits, how can you withstand the criticism in the court?"

Seeing that Sun Chuanting was still hesitant, Zhang Cheng said again: "Boya, you are rectifying the military and political affairs in Shaanxi, and I will also rectify the military and political affairs in the Central Plains. A number of evil tyrants and gentry must be killed."

Only by killing quickly and in large numbers can we deter the villains; otherwise, all our previous efforts may be in vain, and then what will we talk about serving the country? We will only harm the country.

"Let's do it!" Sun Chuanting seemed to have made up his mind: "When Chuanting returns to Xi'an, he will mobilize the new army, kill another batch of evil gentry, recruit another 10,000 new soldiers, and follow the Earl of Yongning out of the pass to suppress the bandits."

"Alright." Zhang Cheng punched Sun Chuanting in the chest and said, "Anyone who colludes with the traitors, regardless of their identity, can be killed."

"You kill in Shaanxi, I'll kill in the Central Plains. We must exterminate these traitors and villains!"

Sun Chuanting did not speak again, but his heavy nods showed his attitude and determination. It was at this moment that the Earl of Yongning saw that resolute look in Sun Chuanting's eyes once again.

…………

While waiting for the banquet, Hu Yiwen asked in bewilderment, "Commander-in-Chief, how could Sun Chuanting be so obedient, revealing the true situation of the Shaanxi troops without any concealment?"

"Hmph," Zhang Cheng laughed, "Do these matters need him to speak of them?"

Lin Fangping then added, "Liu Shizun has already reported these matters truthfully. The intelligence we have on the Shaanxi army is probably even more detailed than that of Governor Sun."

“However…” Zhang Cheng said with a hint of doubt, “I don’t quite understand Sun Chuanting.”

"What does the Commander-in-Chief mean...?"

"Where did the arrogant and unruly Sun Chuanting go? How could he be so obedient?"

…………

Meanwhile, Sun Chuanting was not idle either. While waiting for the banquet, he was also having a secret discussion with his staff.

"Lord Governor, are we really going to continue the killing?" Chen Jitai, Sun Chuanting's chief advisor, asked softly when no one else was around.

"kill!"

Without hesitation, Sun Chuanting replied, "Anyone who occupies public or military land and refuses to return it shall be killed; anyone who refuses to pay the taxes owed for the occupied public or military land shall be killed..."

"But... if we keep killing like this, I'm afraid that before the Governor even leaves the pass to suppress the bandits, he will be overwhelmed by the attacks from the officials in the capital!"

Sun Chuanting looked at Chen Jitai and said, "If we don't kill them, where will we get the grain to feed the soldiers? If we don't kill them, where will we get the money to buy weapons?"

"But... even if the Governor doesn't think of himself, he should at least... think of his descendants!"

Sun Chuanting was taken aback upon hearing this, and the resolute look in his eyes instantly faded considerably. (End of Chapter)